I have always noticed I have the majority of my best and most creative ideas when I am on the verge of sleep. After reading once that sleep deprivation can inspire creativity I have always kept a journal on my nightstand to quickly scribble my ideas in. A ton of my blog posts have been thought up in the dead of night along with the majority of my drawings, and don't get me started on the collection of story ideas that I'm sitting on. This simple life change has revolutionized my creative process, and never fails to give me a great excuse to nap.
Disclaimer: Products linked are created by me and therefore will give me some profit if you purchase them.
I'm Not Crazy I Swear
There are many others who have used sleep deprivation and the mystery that goes on within your brain surrounding sleep to enhance their creativity. Artists like Leonardo Da Vinci have often used sleep and dreams to inspire their beautiful paintings. Nicolas Tesla often deprived himself of sleep to help solve creative problems. Edison also came up with many of his brilliant ideas when working late into the night. Many of these famous creatives took this theory to an extreme that I do not recommend for your physical and mental health but I am not alone in thinking there is a link between sleep (or lack thereof) and ideas.
Science Suggests
There was a study done in which researchers took students and asked them a series of questions that relied on a spark of creativity to solve. These questions were asked at different times of the day depending on when the students reported to be most awake. The students who were self declared night owls had a tendency to solve the riddles much faster in the morning (their non optimal time of the day) vs in their optimal time. Analytic problems had no improvement or impairment when asked throughout the day. This suggests that there may be a link between being sleepy and creativity.
“Time of Day Effects on Problem Solving: When the Non-Optimal Is Optimal.” Taylor & Francis, 2 Dec. 2011, https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13546783.2011.625663
Not The Most Accessible
Although there may be a proven correlation and many famous people vouching for being tired and creative it is by no means practical or healthy. Sleep deprivation comes with a whole new set of problems from physical to mental health. And anyone with a consistent work or school schedule can't afford to take such carelessness with their potential productivity. Even if you do have the opportunity to try sleep deprivation I doubt anyone would want to.
My Idea
As an artist I didn't want to let any chance at creativity go but I also didn't want to sacrifice my health. So I started a journal that I keep next to my bed for when the brilliant ideas hit. By keeping the book close I am able to write down every idea while falling asleep as soon as I'm done. This way of gathering ideas has saved countless moments of inspiration and has honestly helped with my ability to sleep. I'm someone who will stress about forgetting things and this has often kept me up at night. By writing these ideas down I am able to let it go until morning when I can actually do something about it.
Journal
I have self published journals for anyone who may want to try this method or have been doing something similar and want a cute place to gather it all. Check them out below and click the link to find my author's profile on Amazon.
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